Psychologists Say Money Can Buy Happiness—If It’s Spent The Right Way

Across the world, people are complaining about having less time to do what they really want, Quartz writes.

Despite the ever-increasing number of so-called “life hacks” that promise ways to squeeze more exercise, books, and productivity in our busy days, the study suggests that people can increase their happiness if they use money to free up time.

Researchers surveyed more than 6,000 adults in the US, Canada, Denmark, and the Netherlands, and asked them questions about how much money they spent on time-saving purchases each month.

Among the participants were 800 millionaires, working class people and people on incomes between the two.

For American participants, buying time increased happiness by about 0.77 (paywall) on a ten-point scale.

In a second experiment, the researchers asked 60 working adults in Canada to spend $40 on a time-freeing purchase.

Participants used the money to get lunches delivered to work and cleaning services.

The researchers then asked participants to spend $40 on material items, such as clothes or books.

The participants reported feeling much happier when they spent money on time-saving services. When participants bought material items, their average happiness score was 3.7 on a five-point scale.

But those who bought time averaged a 4 on a five-point scale—a small, but important difference.

“The benefits of buying time held across the income spectrum and seemed to benefit those with less money the most,” says lead researcher Ashley Whillans, an assistant professor at the Harvard Business School.

In their initial survey, researchers observed a strong link between buying time and life satisfaction among less affluent individuals in the US. However, Whillans adds that more research needs to be done to better understand why this link was particularly strong with lower-income people.

While spending on time-saving services made people happier, most people chose not to spend their money that way—even those who were high on the income scale?

In a third experiment, researchers asked 98 working adults how they’d spend an unexpected windfall of $40. Only 2% said they’d buy a time-saving purchase.

“Factors such as guilt, or protestant work ethic might get in the way of encouraging people from spending money in this way,” Whillans explains.

Psychologists Say Money Can Buy Happiness—If It’s Spent The Right Way - overview

Summary: Across the world, people are complaining about having less time to do what they really want.

Consider the life of a chef on the road. Even when they’re not doing “research” for an upcoming project—trips that are essentially designed for overeating and drinking—they’re still likely seeking the best of what got them into the industry in the first place: damn good food.

The proliferation of low-cost airlines flying out of the U.S. means that it’s now possible to hop to Europe for as low as half the price charged by major carriers, the New York Times writes. But there’s always a trade-off — and it pays to comparison-shop, according to the publication.

Featured Contributors

Chasing snake oil and fad gurus is harmless until your journey of personal discovery becomes a platform for prescribing therapies to complete strangers. Any reasonably diligent venture capital partner should be weighing the risks.

Shkreli — who famously insulted members of Congress earlier this year but refused to testify officially over his own decision to increase the price of a life-saving pill — is now hopping at the chance to defend generic drug manufacturer Mylan.
He may even have opened the door to testify before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, where he previously cited his Fifth Amendment's right to avoid incriminating himself.
"Any chance i can come through this time and actually testify?" he tweeted Thursday in a post directed at the committee's Democrats.
All of this now paves an unlikely new friendship between Shkreli and Mylan CEO Heather Bresch.
Heather Bresch created about $15 billion in value for Mylan in the seven years since she stepped up as president of the company. A big part of that value add came from her talent for repackaging off-the-shelf drugs into bona fide blockbusters.

Donald Trump is talking about Hillary Clinton’s health, as are two doctors who havenever evaluated Clinton. They have apparently diagnosed her with all kinds of ailments using the long disproven Fox-Drudge equation.
This attention on Clinton has renewed some interest in the letter Donald Trump released last year from his personal physician.

Even as doctors enter a medical field with more paying patients under the Affordable Care Act and unprecedented numbers of job opportunities, 25 percent of “newly trained physicians” would still choose another field if they could, according to a new analysis.